Know your Copy(rights)!

By Peter Vaughan Shaver, Esq., a Portland-based arts & entertainment attorney. Peter will present “Understanding Copyrights for Creative Professionals” on May 22nd, 6-8pm.

Knowledge of copyright law is essential for anyone providing creative services or products of any kind, including artists, designers, writers, photographers and craftspeople. Every creative business endeavor involves copyrights and contracts that implicate them. An essential understanding of basic copyright law terminology is critical to protecting your creative work and avoiding giving up too many rights.

Many creative businesses and service providers get into legal trouble due to working with clients and consumers without proper knowledge of copyrights. If you have an arts-based business, or even a hobby, that involves producing creative works or products, you need to know how to best protect yourself against infringement or unauthorized use by others.

Many consumers of creative services do not… Read The Full Post »

Mobile Marketing in a Multi-Screen World

By Rebecca Whitefield at Anvil Media, a Portland marketing consultancy specializing in integrated marketing and search engine marketing. Mobile marketing is the focus of Mercy Corps Northwest’s upcoming seminar: “Determing Your Mobile Marketing Mix” on May 15th, 6-8pm.

Marketers and industry experts worldwide have proclaimed each year to be the “Year of Mobile” for about the last six years or so.  There’s no refuting the fact that we now live in a mobile and multi-screen world.  An optimized mobile presence is no longer an option for today’s marketers.  Here’s a look at key areas to consider when integrating mobile into your marketing mix.

A Multi-Screen World
There are three main screens potential customers are consuming digital content on: smartphones, tablets and PCs. Consumption patterns are different on each device.  For example, smartphones are used heavily for social media, video consumption and local search while tablets are associated with browsing and… Read The Full Post »

Mind Your Own Business

By Jennifer de Thomas, a financial adviser in Portland who thrives on organizing people’s financial lives so they are free to concentrate on what they love to do.

Financial planning – that’s a subject for rich, well-established business owners, right? Doesn’t a small startup not need to worry about financial planning for years? Financial planning couldn’t possibly help your small business…or could it?

You didn’t go into business for yourself to study cash flow, budgeting, retirement planning, financial statements, taxes, or insurance. Consequently the “business” side of your business has taken a back seat to everything else, until it comes screeching to the front in the form of late bills, tax penalties, flood, fire or even the bank that says no to the line of credit you really need to expand for lack of solid financial statements.

Your business thrives on your creativity, hard work, ingenuity, grit, and yes, financial planning. While you focus on the… Read The Full Post »

Female business owners—are you taking advantage of local Accelerator and Mentoring programs?

By Emily Youatt

Start-up accelerator programs offering industry-focused programs and support for women are popping up across the country. These programs serve a variety of needs—entrepreneurial, educational, investment opportunities, and networking.

Many programs offered are structured to offer support in strategic start-up business success. What does this mean?

Take The Women’s Small Business Accelerator of Central Ohio as an example. In a typical session, female start-up owners sit through educational sessions and interactive monthly roundtables facilitated by small business experts. Owners can brainstorm real-business challenges and scenarios and come up with creative solutions to their small-business challenges.

It’s important to choose the correct accelerator program. Before committing, find out who sponsors the group and if they bring in the right small-business experts for your needs. Research online and speak to previous participants—were their needs… Read The Full Post »